Here’s the thing about awards, awards shows, and awards organizations. The best nominee doesn’t always win. Hell, the “best” nominee rarely ever wins because, in spite of what people tell you or what camp you happen to fall into, the vast majority of people base their votes on friendships, familiarity, popularity, ideas, or messages. Those who do vote for “the best” tend to select from a fairly narrow range of possibilities – based on friendships, familiarity, popularity, ideas, or messages. It’s somewhat bewildering, occasionally downright frustrating, to see awards go to certain works while other equally great (occasionally better) works go ignored, often not even making a preliminary list of nominees.
As a fairly voracious reader, I read a lot of books in 2015, many of them award nominees, just as many lesser-known works from lesser-known (to me) authors. And, as I began to check out the 2016 releases, I looked back at the titles I enjoyed in 2015 and thought: “That deserved some sort of recognition.”. And then: “Hell, I should just give out my own awards.”
I read a lot across a wide variety of genres. I can make a well-informed decision. I know what I like. And, most importantly, I AM opinionated. So, why the hell not?
At first, I thought I’d call my awards The Jovians (Get it?) but discovered the Jovian Awards (for Fantasy & Science Fiction) already exists. My second choice would be the Saturn Awards but, alas, that too has been taken. A quick google search turned up –
Mercury Awards – for music
Venus Awards – for local working women in business
Mars Awards – for designers (named after the chocolate bar, not the planet)
Neptune Awards – for marketing
Pluto Awards – for SciFi, fantasy and alternate history books
Kepler Awards – for European young scientists
Uranus Awards – surprisingly available!
In the end, I settled on something a little more in keeping with the wayward, independent spirit of these awards: Rogue Star (“a star that has escaped the gravitational pull of its home galaxy and is moving independently in or towards the intergalactic void” [wikipedia]).
Presenting awards in three categories (only because I didn’t read enough potential entries in any of the alternate categories. Also, I need to get out there and watch more movies.). Great reads all. Check them out!
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BEST GRAPHIC NOVEL
NOMINEES
Bitch Planet, vol. 1 – Kelly Sue DeConnick and Valentine De Landro, Image
Divinity – Matt Kindt and Trevor Hairsine, Valiant
Jupiter’s Circle, vol. 1 – Mark Millar and Frank Quitely, Image
Saga, vol. 5 – Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples, Image
The Walking Dead,vol. 23 Robert Kirkman and Stefano Guadiano, Image
WINNER
Saga, vol. 5 – Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples, Image
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BEST SHORT STORY
NOMINEES
“A Murmuration” – Alastair Reynolds, Interzone
“Calved” – Sam J. Miller, Asimov’s
“Re: re: Microwave in the break room doing weird things to fabric of spacetime” – Charles Yu, Terraform
“So Much Cooking” – Naomi Kritzer, Clarkesworld
“Today I Am Paul” – Martin L. Shoemaker, Clarkesworld
WINNER
“Today I Am Paul” – Martin L. Shoemaker, Clarkesworld
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BEST NOVEL
NOMINEES
Beyond Redemption – Michael R. Fletcher, Harper Voyager
The Flicker Men – Ted Kosmatka, Henry Holt and Co.
Half A War – Joe Abercrombie, Harper Voyager
Touch – Claire North, Orbit Books
The Traitor Baru Cormorant – Seth Dickinson, Tor
WINNER
Beyond Redemption – Michael R. Fletcher, Harper Voyager
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Congratulations to the winners. You can pick up your prize – in the form of a beer – should we ever cross paths!
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